Charles Linton Crane, the son of a steamboat captain, was born in Rochester, Pennsylvania in 1861.  The family moved to St. Louis when Charles was 11 years old, and he lived here until his retirement.  He began selling insurance as a young man, and in 1885 he founded his own agency.  Some of his early clients were barge owners, so the river continued to play a role in his life.

Crane married his wife, Augusta, in 1883; she was the sister-in-law of President James Garfield.  They had three children: Frank, Charles Jr., and Helen.  He believed in paying bills on time, regardless of the circumstances.  A former Crane Agency partner recalled an era when business in general was struggling: "Even during the Depression when we were in pretty bad shape - like everyone else was at the time - we still paid off our companies."  Charles Crane and his partners took out bank loans and paid the remainder out-of-pocket.

Upon his retirement in 1933, the founding father of the Crane Agency moved to California.  There he bought and operated a large citrus fruit ranch.  Charles Crane died in Beverly Hills, CA in 1944 at the age of 83.

Thanks to the hard work and integrity of its founder, the Crane Agency continues to grow and prosper throughout its many branch offices.